Eyes Wide Shut
by VintageMadame
Summary: In a world where everyone's eye color is their soulmate's hair color, the students at Wawanaka High are just trying to make it through each day with as little damage to their pride as possible. But with the usual drama of high school, unclear eye colors, and a soulmate reveal no one saw coming, everyone will soon learn that it's impossible to plan ahead for fate.
1. Synopsis

**Lightning's eyes are black. His soulmate could be any number of people, but he couldn't care less. He doesn't have time to worry about it, not with football season starting.**

**Heather's eyes are blue. She's the only one in the school with blue eyes. Only Heather knows why, and she's not telling anyone a damn thing.**

**DJ's eyes are yellow- pastel yellow. He's perfectly fine with a platonic soulmate, if that ends up being the case. He's starting to doubt that's the case.**

**Courtney's eyes change color all the time. She has no idea what that means. She's not sure if she wants to find out.**

**Sky's eyes were dark brown. Well, Dave said they were black, and she was always too exhausted to argue about it. Then a fight breaks out, followed by a hospital visit shortly thereafter. And now, her eyes are white.**


	2. Dark Brown, Almost Black

_Tuesday, September 3__rd__, 7:30am: Sky_

It wasn't always like this.

**Dave: **I can't believe you.

Or maybe it was, but Sky was always too busy to notice the red flags. Not even a month into her new routine and she finds herself craving the early morning training sessions that used to start her days. By this point, Dave's frequent texts only served to make everything worse, and today they were never ending.

**Dave: **Your schedule finally opens up you still can't make time for me? Your boyfriend?

She'd almost feel bad about her decision if this summer had been any better for her. Ever since her training ended- _put on hiatus_, her parents told her- Dave had gotten so unbearable. Or perhaps he had been unbearable for a while now, and Sky just had more free time to notice how controlling he is. Their mutual friends never seemed to believe her. They only knew Dave as the kind, sensitive, germaphobe he had been when they first got together.

**Dave: **Most soulmates wouldn't be so selfish, Sky.

_We're not soulmates_-is what she wants to text back, but she wasn't ready to have that argument. She described her eye color as dark brown once during her sophomore year and had been shut down by Dave so fast that she never brought it up again.

Maybe she is being selfish, but she couldn't afford to care right now. Her family's decision to halt her training had been a sucker punch to her life, and time hadn't numbed the pain yet. It seemed that Jasmine's suggestion to join cheerleading with her was the closest thing to relief she was going to get.

**Dave: **Stop ignoring me!

She was going to continue to ignore him. Sky knew she was terrible at hiding her emotions while she texted. Her dad was currently driving her to school, and she wasn't ready to explain what was wrong. She was already entrenched within high school drama, and she hadn't even started her first day of school. Stopping gymnastics, the thing she loved the most, may have dampened her confidence, but it didn't kill her resolve completely. She was joining cheerleading. Lindsay had already guaranteed her a spot as a flyer. This was happening. So for now, she wasn't going to respond to him.

Of course, she couldn't ignore him forever- they had 3rd period Chemistry together. But Jasmine and Samey were in that class too, so maybe she could convince one of them to be her lab partner. She sent a quick text to Jasmine asking if Shawn wouldn't mind switching seats for one period. If they planned it ahead of time, she might just dodge the bullet.

This was way too much effort to avoid someone that was supposedly her soulmate. Sky knew that, she really did. But after everything that happened with Keith the year before, and Dave being so sweet at first… she felt an immense pressure to make it work. She didn't want to deal with the fallout of the inevitable break up, at least not right now.

Maybe when she feels a little better about herself.

As her dad finally pulls up to school, Sky takes a look in the side mirror for a few seconds before closing the car door. Her dad probably thinks she's just fixing her hair, and she's fine leaving him with that assumption.

The truth was much more personal.

Brown. Dark brown. That's the color of her eyes. Not black, no matter what Dave or anyone else says. She's found herself checking the mirror more than ever lately. She had to be reassured of her eye color before she lost herself completely to the trials of high school.

As she finally made her way to the school's entrance, she mentally thanked her soulmate for having dark brown hair, even though they had no say in the matter. Still, Sky thought of her eye color, her_ real _eye color, as an act of rebellion; a not-secret that everyone knew but only she indulged in.

She didn't want to meet her soulmate right now or any time soon. She couldn't handle that with everything else going on. But she appreciated them all the same.

* * *

_Tuesday, September 3__rd__, 7:45am: Lightning & Courtney_

Lightning and Courtney were different in a lot of ways. In fact, once Courtney wrote a list of all the ways they were different. And even though Lightning knew that each list item was true, he was still shocked by how long the list ended up being.

Still, if there was one thing the pair did agree on, it was that mornings were a waste of time until they got their coffee. They liked it the same way too: dark roast, a splash of cream, iced in the summers and hot in the winters. Although they were both very proud of their perfect attendance records (Lighting for athletic reasons and Courtney for academic ones), they'd rather burn the school to the ground then enter that god-forsaken building without their daily dose of caffeine.

Which is why they're both just a tad irritated when their favorite coffee shop with the drive-thru window is closed for renovations, meaning they have to completely change course before heading out. They've taken the same route to high school in the same Range Rover with the same driver for years now (Courtney for four years, Lightning for three), and this is the first time they've found themselves here. Waiting in line, sunglasses to cover their eyes and hats to cover their hair, for coffee. What's worse, the delay means they've fallen right into the morning rush, making what is normally a ten-minute wait now nearing 25. So yeah, they're rather irritated.

"Ugh, DJ just texted us. He's already at school." Courtney scowls. She's addressing Lightning, but glaring at her phone like it personally attacked her.

Before Lightning can reply, the barista finally calls out Courtney's name. She tells Lightning before heading over to the counter, "Text him back letting him know we'll be late, but we got his drink. I'll grab the coffees."

Lightning does as he's told, too exhausted to argue the point that it'd make more sense for him to grab the drinks. He types out word-for-word what Courtney said, because he knows she'll give him hell if he forgets anything important.

They head back to the Range Rover with four coffees in total- two for them (both iced this time), a Frappuccino for DJ (they both die a little inside every time DJ requests one), and a latte for Dwayne, their driver. Lightning snatches the latte for Dwayne, much to Courtney's chagrin, and hands it over to the man.

"Sha-here you go, my man! The Lightning made sure to remember your drink! Courtney was gonna forget."

Courtney lightly kicks him in the shin before settling into her seat. Lightning would retaliate, but she is holding his drink right now. Smart move.

"Please, you'd forget _your _order if I wasn't there to remind you." Courtney replies before handing him his coffee.

Dwayne chuckles at the two before raising his cup. "Thanks kids! Off to school?"

Courtney answers back, "Yup, and hurry if you can. I can't miss homeroom."

"Please, sha-homeroom is like, the one class that you _can_ miss." Lightning adds

"It's our first day! _My _first day of Senior Year!"

"Don't worry Courtney, I'll get you there in time." Dwayne assures them.

The car falls into silence after that. Lightning's content to looking out the window for the rest of the ride, until a constant tapping sound breaks his trances. He glances over to Courtney, who's glued to her phone. While she's been known to be attached to her PDA, she was never much of an avid texter.

He gives her a sharp poke in the arm to grab her attention. "Sha-how could you have so much to say right now? Lightning knows that DJ is not _that _concerned about his milkshake."

"Bridgette's in my English class too. We're going over the summer reading now, in case I miss her in homeroom." Courtney answers matter-of-factly.

Lightning squints back at her in disbelief. "Uh-huh. And…?"

"…Duncan and Gwen are in my homeroom. DJ told them I might be late, so they're asking why."

"Asking together, or…?"

Courtney scowls back, "Jesus, Lightning, they don't share a fucking phone. Separately, obviously."

"Lightning don't trust them. Especially mohawk-dude."

"I know, I don't either."

"So why you sha-texting them?"

"I have some things to think over."

"Uh-huh. Like how they kissed?"

"_Yes, _Lightning. Thanks for the reminder. But now that I have a better control of my anger, Duncan and I might actually make some progress."

"Lightning thinks that's bullshit, and you do too."

"He could be my soulmate."

"Sha-no he isn't. And even if he was, it's a waste of time." Lightning mumbles as he turns his head to face the window.

Courtney takes a deep sigh before deciding how to respond. She tries to sound rational, even though she's not entirely convinced herself. "You know it's the only thing that makes sense. Why my eyes are like… this. Besides, you're one to talk. Not everyone has their pick of the litter for soulmate possibilities."

Courtney's wrong about Duncan. Lightning knows this. But he knows their eye colors are a sore spot for her, and he has just enough common sense to not fight her on it.

Lightning's eyes are black, almost completely so. His irises are just slightly lighter than his pupils, and you can only really tell the difference up close. And there are so many people out there with black hair that sometimes it really feels like his soulmate could be anyone. His brown hair doesn't diminish the pool by much. The number of black-haired, brown-eyed people in his school alone is pretty big.

He supposes he could dye his hair to see if any of his classmate's eyes change color. It won't change their eye color completely, but it would give them a new tint, especially if he goes with something lighter. But football season is in full-swing now, and Lightning's never really cared about the soulmate thing. He has so many other concerns, romance isn't even a consideration. It'd just be a distraction.

The same can't be said for Courtney.

Courtney's eyes are… well, Lightning's not really sure what color they are. When she was younger, they were brown, like her own hair color. But then as she grew older, they developed shades of other colors- greens, grays, more browns- that they became they multi-color confusion they are today. Lightning has sworn he's seen them change color right before him, but everyone else thinks he's just being dramatic.

But no one has the natural hair color of Courtney's eyes, so people are always asking invasive personal questions about her soulmate that she doesn't have any answers to. Courtney refused to admit just how much the questions bothered her. Not even to Lightning, who's known her for most of her life.

After what felt like an unbearable stretch of silence, Dwayne finally pulls into Wawanaka High. Lightning and Courtney both thank him as they make their leave.

"Lightning still thinks you're being dumb about this." Lightning tells her before they part to their respective homerooms.

Courtney waves him off as she leaves, but says nothing. That's a first.

* * *

_Tuesday, September 3__rd__, 8:20am: DJ_

This time last year, if anyone had told DJ _this_ would be his Senior Year homeroom class, he would've been thrilled. In fact, this class looked like Junior Year DJ picked it out himself.

Half a semester and one summer break later, this homeroom now looks like the source of all his anxieties and headaches for the next year, at least. He's sure some of the inevitable stress of this class will carry over into college.

It's sad how much things have changed. This group used to be his people. Less than a year ago, the same people that were avoiding each other now would be saving him a seat in the cafeteria, asking him for help on everything from crushes to cooking. He remembers when Gwen and Duncan used to meet him and Courtney on Friday nights for the football games. They'd cheer on Lightning, Geoff, and Brody, and then head over to Geoff's place afterwards to either celebrate their victory or forget their loss.

Now Gwen and Duncan were… well, whatever they were. Anytime they were nearby, Courtney would always look two seconds away from crying or fighting. It didn't help that Duncan kept sneaking peeks at her when he thought no one was looking. He's not sure if Gwen caught on to it, but DJ sure did.

Geoff and Bridgette finally got together at their junior year prom. They were the first pair of confirmed soulmates in their group, and it appears they forgot about everyone else that was once part of their life. Which would explain why Brody's sitting next to DJ now, rather than with his best friend. The tan surfer was chatting his ear off about how he was going to convince MacArthur that they were soulmates this year. Two tables ahead of them, MacArthur and Sanders sat off on their own, completely uninterested in everyone else's concerns.

Sadie and Katie still seemed to be friends, at least that much was still the same. Lindsay and Heather were very much _not_ friends anymore, if the glares they were pointedly giving one another proved anything. If the new seating arrangements were anything to go by, Lindsay's new best friend was Leshawna, who was usually who DJ went to vent to when he needed the perspective of someone sane.

Before DJ could worry any more about how the hell he was going to survive all the awkward social dynamics of senior year, a Frappuccino was placed in front of him. This time, it was strawberry. He angles his head to look up towards the person who blessed him with this delivery, and was unsurprised to see Courtney looking down at him.

"Why is Brody here?" She asks, unable to hide the bitterness in her tone.

"Geoff's with Bridgette." He answers plainly. He trusts Courtney, but he isn't ready to get into the awkwardness of this homeroom with everyone else within listening distance.

Thankfully, Courtney moved on from Brody to the subject she really wanted to discuss. "Why are _they _sitting next to each other?" She gestures towards Duncan and Gwen across the room.

"I don't know, you'll have to ask them. I thought you decided to avoid them." As if that was easy when she'd have to look at both of them at least once a day.

"I changed my mind after talking with them. But now I've changed it again. They don't exist, as far as I'm concerned."

"Good, that's probably best. You should probably grab a seat before Chef gets hear. We'll talk at lunch."

DJ said it so nonchalantly, as if the only seat available wasn't sitting next to Heather. Heather was sometimes part of the group, sometimes not. But after her and Gwen's feud reached a head at last year's Winter Formal, she was more often not part of the group than was. And now there was a falling out between Gwen, Duncan and Courtney, so maybe Heather would be back? But she had a falling out with Lindsay, and Leshawna was never a fan, and…

God, he needs to get a grip. Homeroom hasn't even started yet and he's already stressing himself out about the rest of the year.

By this time, Courtney had taken her seat next to Heather, avoiding the waiting gazes of Gwen and Duncan.

DJ looked at the window to calm himself down with the view, only to catch his gaze in the window's reflection. Specifically, his eyes. They were a light yellow, much rarer than the usual blacks and browns of his classmates' eyes.

Whoever his soulmate is, he hopes they are having a much less stressful day than him.

* * *

_Tuesday, September 3__rd__, 8:30am: Heather_

Heather was so busy glaring holes into the back of Lindsay and Leshawna's heads, she almost didn't notice Courtney taking a seat next to her.

Much like herself, Courtney had gained a reputation for her strong-willed personality and indistinguishable eye color. To be honest, it's kind of a miracle that they haven't butted heads, but there was always someone else more willing to start a rivalry with her. Courtney was much more invested in her own academic success, and Heather was no threat to her in that regard. As long as they stayed out of each other's way, they remained on neutral ground with each other.

Perhaps this neutrality could be useful moving into their senior year. This summer had been terrible to her, and if the way Courtney was avoiding looking in Duncan and Gwen's line of vision was any indication, the break hadn't treated her much better.

She tries to tell herself that the summer doesn't matter anymore. She's in her Senior Year now, and it's time she acted like it. High School has always been a chess game to her. By never getting too close to anyone, she continues to have a little bit more power than anyone else. She intends to keep it that way. She's been running this school since her freshman orientation. There's always a new student that needs guidance, a scandal resulting from some popular student's poor decisions, or a dance that creates all sorts of tension. Heather's always been one step ahead of everyone. Never the victim, sometimes the instigator, but always the one who profits from it at the end of the day.

Lindsay was her first, and only, slip-up. Over the summer, she went off on Heather during one of their beach days. It was supposed to be the kind of day she could post about on Instagram and make everyone else jealous that they hadn't been included. But then she had Lindsay carry their stuff, buy their drinks, and listen to Heather's rants about what's wrong with their other classmates. By the time she reached Leshawna's name, Lindsay snapped in a way she never had with anyone, but especially Heather.

The day had been cut short, and Heather was down a friend, if she could have ever called her that in the first place.

She was both surprised by the outburst and not. Surprised because she never expected Lindsay to actually react like that, and not surprised because she knew everything Lindsay was saying was right. She knew she took advantage of Lindsay's kindness. And she was sorry in a way, but refused to apologize. Why should she? It's not like she was planning on changing anytime soon.

She can do this; she can survive one more year in this dump. Then it's off to wherever the fuck she wants to go, doing whatever the fuck catches her interest at the moment. Maybe an internship with her mom first, and then she'll see what offers come after that. That's probably the most reasonable thing to do.

But before she starts making plans for her future, she still has to survive one last year. One more year of judgmental stares, useless gossip, and pretending to ignore the smirks from everyone that got a laugh out of her blue eyes. Her blue eyes that everyone assumed meant she didn't have a soulmate, that she just wasn't lovable enough.

Whatever.

The thoughts about her eyes led her thoughts to wander back to Courtney, whose multicolored disaster of irises seemed to gain a new shade every day. If anyone was not going to care about whether or not Heather had a soulmate, it would be her.

Maybe they could help each other out this year. If not as friends, then as allies at the very least.

So, when Courtney settles into her seat and takes out her a notebook and pen, Heather whispers to her, "You're better off without them."

The sudden comment startled Courtney, who was clearly not expecting Heather to even acknowledge her. She quickly recovers, and raises an eyebrow to her as she asks for clarification.

"What?"

Heather gestures over to Duncan and Gwen. Courtney doesn't look in their direction, but she still knows who she's referring to. "The Box-Dye Bunch. I'd say you dodged a bullet getting rid of them before Senior Year starts. You might actually get Prom Queen now."

Courtney looks like she wants to retaliate, probably with something about how uninterested she was in Prom Queen, but then her face relaxes instead. She even gives a slight smile in return before replying.

"Thanks. Uh… you're better off without her too. Not them but… well, you know who."

Heather does know who, but chuckles back. "No, I'm not. We all know that."

"I know. It just seemed like the nice thing to say."

Heather is about to retaliate with a quip of her own, but it's at that very moment that Chef storms in to start homeroom. It's no matter, they can continue their talk later on, they're bound to have at least one other class together.

Maybe this year won't be so bad after all.

* * *

**So, there you have it, the first chapter of Eyes Wide Shut! This is more an introductory chapter than anything else. As of right now, Courtney, Lightning, Sky, DJ, and Heather are the primary perspectives in the story. So who is exactly each person's soulmate? Why is Sky taking a break from gymnastics? Why do Lightning and Courtney take the same car? Who is DJ's soulmate? Why are Heather's eyes blue? I have answers to all these questions that will be revealed... well, eventually. And some much sooner than others. **

**Please don't hesitate to leave a review, I'm so nervous to be writing again and I can't wait to receive some guesses/feedback! Thank you all!**

**Stay Beautiful,**

**VintageMadame **


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